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In the ever-evolving landscape of electronic music, few artists manage to strike a perfect balance between raw emotion and high-energy soundscapes. Marbs is one such creator, crafting music that resonates on both a personal and dancefloor level. From their journey of self-discovery in the studio to the influences that shaped their sonic identity, they share insights into their creative process, the evolution of their tracks, and their vision for the future of electronic music. In this conversation, we explore the inspiration behind their latest work, the challenges of knowing when a track is truly “finished,” and the impact of running a label on their artistic growth.
1. Tidal Break EP showcases a deep emotional journey. How do you translate personal experiences into your music?
- – For me, personal experiences are everything in creating music and art. The more I’m experiencing personally, the more I have to work with when I’m creating. Focusing on tuning into my emotions, the turbulence, my love life, my adventures, everything becomes substance when going into the studio. If I just sat around all day and didn’t experience anything my creations would be dull and flat like my life, but if I live a life rich with experience then my creations reflect that naturally. I really focus on how I’m feeling and what I’m going through when I start creating something new. 2. Toroidal plays with the idea of self-discovery and unpredictability. What was the creative process behind this track?
- – Man, it’s life right? I had a tough year for a lot of reasons… that feeling of “I’m in flow and feel clicked into my track!” To then be quickly followed by unexpected life turns that derail that feeling. When I first started writing these tracks I was feeling that turbulence immensely. Love life, industry speed bumps, the climate of everything right now… sometimes hard times can really propel creativity and I find that sometimes it propels my creativity more than when everything is “good.” This keeps me tuned into myself and my emotions and this creative outlet is like therapy. It gives me a space to express myself in a creative way and get feelings out that I have been holding in. 3. Your music blends introspection with dancefloor energy. How do you balance these elements?
– When I’m on dance floors I can feel it when the music is made just for dancing and when its made to make me go deeper. I’ve always been very introspective, but I get a massive release from the collective energy of dance floors. This combination drives me to create things that touch both those notes. 9 times out of 10 I try to create things that make you feel something personally while also connecting you with the collective. Sometimes its tricky finding the balance … maybe one creation will be more introspective and another will be more dance focused, but I think my catalog as a whole falls somewhere between these two and as I grow and evolve as an artist its become easier to have introspective elements paired with a driving groove so that it bridges that gap. Sometimes I dance the hardest when the music takes me on a personal journey, while simultaneously if that’s happening to a majority of people on the dance floor, then I’ve reached that sweet spot where the individual merges with the collective in both an introspective and communal way. Hopefully that makes sense haha.
4. How has Desert Hearts Black allowed you to push your artistic boundaries?
– The label has been such a wonderful project. It’s taught me so much about the industry, intentions, vision, and foresight. Instead of just focusing on my creations its pushed me to think bigger and put out music from artists I believe in to create a sound and community that reflects what I love about the industry, which then provides feedback that influences my personal creations and work as well. Working with so many incredibly talented artists pushes me in my own ways to become a better artist and version of myself. I’m so grateful for the label and the journey its provided. It’s also helped my brand, my reach, and
my standing in the industry, while providing all of those things to the artists I believe in, so it lifts us all up and creates community ~ which, to me, community is the most important thing in this industry.
5. What role do vocals play in your production process, especially in Toroidal?
- – Vocals have been a good tool to make the message of my tracks more “on-the-nose.” I look at the vocal as the backbone of the message, while the instrumental elements tell the more broad story. So for example in toroidal the vocal is very uplifting and telling a story of someone who has “found their way,” but then the drops happen and the music gets more trippy, takes weird unexpected turns, the vocal gets fragmented, stuttery, less confident, and fractured… creating a sonic metaphor for life. I like to think that vocals tell one story, and the music makes you dive deeper… at least when I’m combining the two. 6. You’ve been in the scene for years—how has your sound evolved since your early days as a DJ?
- – When Desert Hearts was getting started I played much slower bpms and deeper. Staying within that 122-125 range and really tapping into the early days of crosstown rebels, innervisions, visionquest, the beginning days of Robot Heart at Burning Man… but now I find myself playing in the 128-132 range mostly and leaning more high energy. I also notice my sound changing with where I’m at in life. If I’m going through harder times I seem to enjoy happier high energy music, where when life is good and flowing I sometimes dip more into the introspective side of my creations… and then sometimes this flip flops haha. I’m pretty in tune with myself and
what balance I need in experiences and expression and I notice that reflected in my output and performances. My Tidal Break EP reflects this ~ two tracks that in one space are wildly different, but to me they express the dualities of life and the balance between the ups and downs.
7. What’s next for you after this release? Any exciting projects in the works?
– I have to plug our festival here haha. This time of year I’m always heavily focused on our Desert Hearts Festival as I’m the lead director of operations and creative content. We can’t wait to show everyone what we’re planning for this year and it’s going to be absolutely epic. The event is July 4th weekend near Flagstaff Arizona in the beautiful forest and high desert near Sedona. It’s our baby, our life, and the most important thing we do. Other than that, more releases, more tour dates, and more growth!
